Mirror Images of Kabuki Actors (Yakusha awase kagami) : [volume 1]

Utagawa, Toyokuni, 1769-1825 · 1804 · Japan : [producer not identified] · 11 pictures

A woodblock-printed Japanese book of 1804 by Utagawa Toyokuni, issued in Japan for a general readership, presenting paired half-length portraits of kabuki actors with handwritten verse beside each. The pages show actors in patterned kimono and stage costume, with exaggerated expressions and bold outlines, and a designer could take their flat colour blocks, strong linework, and calligraphic text panels as models for period-inspired layouts.

Thomas J. Watson Library, The Metropolitan Museum of Art · No known copyright restrictions · More from this library